UPSC daily subject quiz | History and Culture (Week 155) : Can you ace these questions for Prelims 2026?

2. When Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru invited his Pakistani counterpart Liaquat Ali Khan to negotiate an agreement on minority welfare, Mookerjee opposed the initiative.

3. He wrote Hindu Pad-Padshahi, analyzing the rise of the Maratha Empire and advocating the concept of a Hindu nation.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

UPSC Relevance: Recently, after the Bengal elections, PM Modi invoked Syama Prasad Mookerjee, highlighting the life and politics of the Jana Sangh founder. Whenever a historical personality is in the news, UPSC aspirants should not miss the opportunity to cover their key contributions and role in India’s history and politics, as such figures often appear in prelims and mains questions.

Explanation:

After India became independent on August 15, 1947, Syama Prasad Mookerjee was in the Hindu Mahasabha, while the British transferred power wholly to the Congress. Alongside his involvement in the partition of Bengal, Mookerjee also became a member of the Constituent Assembly.

Even though he still led the Hindu Mahasabha, Gandhi insisted that Mookerjee be included in free India’s first Cabinet. “Sardar Patel played a decisive role in inducting both Dr BR Ambedkar and Dr Mookerjee in the Cabinet. On the other hand, Dr Mookerjee was a great support to Patel and always worked to strengthen his hands in his great effort to create the Indian union,” add Ganguly and Singh in their work.

Mookerjee went on to serve as the industry and supply minister between 1948 and 1950. He was also credited with several pioneering schemes, such as the Damodar Valley Corporation, fertiliser factory at Sindri, Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, and Hindustan Aircraft of Bangalore. Hence, statement 1 is correct. 

Shyama Prasad Mukherjee in the first Cabinet of India (Wikipedia)

Yet, the fate of Hindu minorities in East Bengal continued to deeply concern Mookerjee. When then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru invited his Pakistani counterpart Liaquat Ali Khan to negotiate yet another agreement on minority welfare, Mookerjee opposed the initiative. He warned Nehru about the collapse of earlier understandings. Hence, statement 2 is correct. 

In a letter dated April 6, 1950, addressed to Nehru, Mookerjee tendered his resignation and requested to be relieved of his responsibilities at the earliest. The reasons, he explained, stemmed from the government’s approach to Indo-Pakistan relations, particularly concerning Bengal.

Mookerjee’s resignation from the Cabinet and his entry into all-India opposition politics marked a decisive turning point.  As Roy argues, “Had he not resigned, there would never have been a Bharatiya Jana Sangh, and no nationalist opposition to the Congress…”.

On returning to Calcutta, he immediately immersed himself in public life and launched a sustained critique of the Nehru-Liaquat Pact, which he viewed as symptomatic of the Indian government’s weakness in dealing with Pakistan.

Hindu Pad-Padshahi, which analyzes the rise of the Maratha Empire and advocates the concept of a Hindu nation, was written by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, not Syama Prasad Mookerjee. Hence, statement 3 is not correct. 

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 2

The famous play The Storming and Capture of Delhi depicts which episode of Indian history?

(a) The Siege of Delhi by Timur, 1398

(b) The Battle of Delhi between Humayun and Sher Shah Suri, 1530s

(c) The Sack of Delhi by Nadir Shah, 1739

(d) The Revolt of 1857 

UPSC Relevance: This is not an usual question. UPSC often tests your ability to link cultural works, like plays or literature, with historical events. The trick lies in carefully analyzing the options and identifying the specific episode each one refers to, rather than relying on general knowledge. Storming of Delhi in 1857 is a standard topic, framing it through a famous play makes it tricky.

Explanation:

“At Astley’s Royal Amphitheatre, a spectacle titled The Storming and Capture of Delhi opened in November 1857, barely two months after the city was recaptured. It promised audiences that the drama was ‘founded upon the present events in India’. In practice, this meant cavalry charges, booming artillery, tableaux of teeming ‘natives’ and, crucially, British officers as the moral centre of the story. The uprising, in other words, was to be consumed as spectacle.”

(During 1857 revolt, British power wrote its own innocence. The script isn’t unfamiliar for our times, written by Parvinder Singh, Express Opinion)

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 3

Ryndia, recently seen in news, refers to:

(a) A traditional silk from Meghalaya that received a GI tag

(b) A type of handwoven bamboo craft from Assam

(c) A famous mango sweet from Uttar Pradesh with a GI tag

(d) A classical dance form from Odisha

UPSC Relevance: GI tags, especially the recent ones, shouldn’t be missed.

Explanation:

Ryndia is a traditional, sustainable Eri silk fabric from Meghalaya, India, known as “peace” or “ahimsa” silk because the silkworms are not harmed during production. Handwoven by women using traditional techniques, this durable, soft, and eco-friendly textile has received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag, symbolizing the state’s rich cultural heritage and artisanal skill.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 4

Gandhi: His Life and Message for the World is a biography written by:

(a) Pyarelal

(b) D.G. Tendulkar

(c) Louis Fischer

(d) C.F. Andrews

UPSC Relevance: 

This question is slightly factual-recall heavy, which makes it somewhat tricky for Prelims because all four options are closely associated with Gandhi studies or the freedom movement.

Explanation:

• Louis Fischer – Gandhi: His Life and Message for the World
• D.G. Tendulkar – Mahatma: Life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (8 volumes)
• Pyarelal – Mahatma Gandhi: The Last Phase

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 5

With reference to the 1857 Revolt, who said the following statement?

“There ought to be one opinion throughout Europe on the Revolt of Hindostan. It is one of the most just, noble, and necessary ever attempted in the history of the world.”

(a) Lord Dalhousie

(b) Lord Canning

(c) Lord Palmerston

(d) None of the above

UPSC Relevance: The Revolt of 1857 is a popular topic in the UPSC exam. Some questions, however, can be tricky or cover aspects you’ve never seen before, making you want to skip them. A careful look at the options and a bit of logical reasoning can often help you pick the right answer.

Explanation:

In September 1857, Britain was starting to wake up to the fact that what was happening in India was more than a mutiny. Reports of atrocities in Cawnpore and elsewhere had come in, and the nation — Parliament, the mainstream liberal press, the general public — was baying for vengeance with one voice. Almost. In the heart of the empire, Ernest Charles Jones — poet, Chartist leader, orator, friend of Karl Marx — wrote in his working-class journal The People’s Paper, “There ought to be one opinion throughout Europe on the Revolt of Hindostan. It is one of the most just, noble, and necessary ever attempted in the history of the world.”

Jones’s views show that, contrary to the popular narrative, the British reaction to the rebellion that began on May 10, 1857, was not a monolith.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 155)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 161)

Daily subject-wise quiz —  Science and Technology (Week 161)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 161)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment and Geography (Week 161)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 160)

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